"H-H-He really did it! He really managed to take 100 steps and reach the silver tree!"
The Sect Elders watching the examination from afar were all shocked speechless by Yuan's flawless performance.
"What happened to the silver tree, though? Why did it turn golden? This didn't happen before even when the founder achieved 100 steps— at least it was not recorded!"
"Forget about the tree! We have another prodigy who rivals our founder in terms of talents! We must let the Sect Master and the Grand Elders know about this as soon as possible! We cannot let such a talent leave our grasp!"
The Sect Elders there then scrambled outside to look for the Sect Master and Grand Elders.
Meanwhile, back at the examination hall, after crossing the silver pond and reaching the silver tree that had suddenly turned into a golden tree, Yuan calmly walked back to the other participants before approaching the Sect Elder.
"I only need to take 75 steps to receive the special jade slip, correct?" Yuan asked the Sect Elder, not even caring about his achievement of 100 steps that put him on the same level as their founder.
"T-T-That's correct…" The Sect Elder nearly forgot how to speak after experiencing this shocking event.
After panicking for a few moments, the Sect Elder finally managed to retrieve a white-colored jade slip and handed it to Yuan with trembling hands.
"H-Here you go…" The Sect Elder lowered his body and offered the special jade slip to Yuan, acting almost like a servant before his lord.
"Thank you," Yuan accepted the white-colored jade slip before tossing it into his spatial ring with the rest of the special jade slips.
After storing away the white-colored jade slip, Yuan turned to the gate and began walking towards it.
"W-Wait a second! Where are you going?" The Sect Elder suddenly stopped him.
"Huh? Didn't I pass this test?" Yuan responded in a dumbfounded voice. Since he passed this test, he was obviously going to the next test.
"You're going to take the next test? That won't be necessary." The Sect Elder shook his head and continued, "You are the only person besides the Founder of the Dragon Essence Temple to have achieved 100 steps in this place, meaning your talents rival our Founder. There's no longer any need for you to participate in the next test because you will be accepted into the sect regardless of the results."
"I don't need to take the next test…?" Yuan raised his eyebrows. How else is he going to obtain the final special jade slip and enter the Dragon Temple?
After a moment of silence, Yuan spoke, "Even if I pass now, I would still like to participate in the final test. After all, I have already come this far. It wouldn't feel good if I stopped here without finishing it. Furthermore, I am doing this mostly for the experience, and I don't want to lose that feeling."
"Doing this for the experience…?" The Sect Elder looked at Yuan with a surprised expression on his face.
However, after pondering for a moment, he found sense in Yuan's words. After all, nobody at the fifth level Spirit Warrior realm would willingly waste their time in this place unless they were doing it for another purpose.
'Perhaps he's a Young Master from a very powerful family that's currently on a journey for training? That would make sense as to why he has to hide his identity and why he's participating in this disciple examination.' The Sect Elder thought to himself.
"If you insist on continuing with the examination, go ahead. I won't stop you if that's what you really want. Just remember that no matter the results, you'll still be qualified to become a disciple at our Dragon Essence Temple." The Sect Elder reminded Yuan before letting him go.
"Thank you," Yuan nodded his head, and he proceeded onto the next test shortly later.
Meanwhile, somewhere within the Dragon Essence Temple, the Sect Master and the Grand Elders gathered at the spectators' room, where the other Sect Elders have been watching the disciple examination.
"Are you sure? That someone from the examination managed to cross the Pond of Evaluation and achieve 100 steps, even making the silver tree turn golden?" The Sect Master of the Dragon Essence Temple, Long Yijun, asked the Sect Elders there with a serious expression on his face.
"Take a look for yourself, Sect Master. The golden tree."
The Sect Elders pointed at the treasure that projected the area for the third exam, and there was a golden tree clearly in the projection.
"Hmm…" Long Yijun became silent and began pondering with a deep frown on his face.
"This participant… What's his name?"
An old man with short white hair and a short beard suddenly asked.
The Sect Elders turned to look at the Grand Elder who just spoke, and one of them said, "He called himself 'Yuan', but we're not sure whether that's his surname or given name. Furthermore, he's already at the fifth level Spirit Warrior realm."
"Huh? His name is Yuan? And he's a fifth level Spirit Warrior?" The old man looked at the Sect Elders with a dazed face.
"Is there something wrong, Elder Xuan?" Long Yijun noticed his odd reaction and asked him.
After a moment of silence, Elder Xuan suddenly burst out laughing for a good minute before speaking, "There's no need to investigate this individual. I know him."
"What? You know this man?"
Everybody in the room looked at him with a surprised look on their faces.
Elder Xuan nodded and said, "Yes, he's my granddaughter— Xuan Wuhan's friend. She sent me a message not long ago about someone very talented and by the name of Yuan who might visit our Dragon Essence Temple in the future and to treat him well."
"Core Disciple Xuan's friend?"
The Sect Elders didn't know whether to laugh or cry after hearing this news, as they had spent the entire day scrambling their heads trying to figure out Yuan's identity and whether or not he was a spy only to find out that he was related to the Xuan Family.